Patrick.

Always a pleasure to interact with yourself on here.

Yes, it's good to have somewhere to hang out with your invisible friends, isn't it ?

... can we do a virtual group hug?

I seem to have got something in my eye... well said, PC.

Well said.

May your Tramp be ever Super

May your Dan be ever Steely.

I spend far too long on here too.

both to you Patrick, the rest of the Massive and the bunch at Word towers. The world is a better place because of this site.

Well said Mr.Crowther.

The Word stage at Cornbury!
Ever a joy and worth all the hard work for The Damned.
Can we have them back next year?

Cheers guys

Ohh shucks!

Patrick, thank you for entertaining us with your thought-provoking and occasionally hilarious contributions to this website. I look forward to reading your comments every time I log on, and I am grateful to you for gently pointing out the errors of my extremely naïve first blog, around a year ago.

Your wit and wisdom is only surpassed by your excellent taste in music, sir.

I wish I was as nice as you.

I don't post here very often, but I spend too much time reading the ramblings of Mr Crowther, Mr Valparaiso et al.

Where else would I find out about quality earphones going cheap on Amazon, which Beatles albums to go for in mono rather than stereo, Madness night on BBC4?

How would I get through my very occasional vein-popping 15 minute jog without the podcast? (Mr Hepworth's voice will forever be associated in my mind with excruciating pain).

And the magazine? Constantly writing articles about stuff I know I want to read, and about stuff I didn't realise I wanted to read that turns about to be just what I want to read.

And all this from an editor who thinks the new Decemberists' lp is the best ever made - it is not even the best Decemberists' lp ever made - and from a Consulting Editor (is that right?) who didn't laugh at In The Loop. How did that happen?

For the past few years my wife has been dealing with terminal illness. 95% of the time we deal with it, we are very self-reliant but also have some great friends but very occasionally as the partner of a cancer sufferer one needs to switch off from the circumstances for a few minutes and The Word magazine and lately this website has been great way for me to do so. It's that combination of sideways humour, passion for quality in all forms of popular culture and a community that asks nothing of you but gives freely.

Feel free to barf.

for this post and your other excellent contributions.

If you ever start a punning / wordplay thread with the words Andrew Collins in the title, I think the site may well spontaneously combust ;-)

Edit: I just realised that the above could also be read as 'The Word's Andrew Collins'.

Eh, I'll go now...

wife on Facebook and Farmville, brain fried after a day at work..this place has become an escape from the fact that at 44 I need to decide what happens to my life now. The range of topics for discussion, to become involved or not and watch as a voyeur as the threads take on a life of their own, learning about new old music, re-evaluating The Beatles and Paul McCartney all at the click of a mouse. It really is a great place to be. Thanks to Patrick and to you all.

Thanks for starting this thread Patrick. I feel a bit of a cove for posting my 'tetchy' comment in the Young People in the cinema blog now...

All life is here - from ELP to Nudie shirts.

And keep it up, Patrick. The occasion of your 1000th post is still the best night in I've had in the past decade ... and I don't get out much! (Apart from the odd gig, obviously).

I know what you mean re the nights in now that you're off the sauce. I quit the lot -and there was a fair amount to quit - nearly four years ago, and seem to have so much more time and energy than ever before. The fantastic thing is the sheer volume of reading and writing (and viewing and listening) I can now get through, and a lot of the demons seem to have subsided as well. Good luck with it all . . .

Or is it here here? Anyway, I concur.

Can you wait 'til payday?

Only kidding, honest! So young man, when did you get back from Italy? I enjoyed your dispatches from the third world and especially your photographical prowess. May you carry on trying to break the blog with your posts-of-many-comments.

You mutual support of Supertramp is much appreciated in an occasional wilderness of taste for all things 'Tramp!

Well said. Also been spending way too much time on here, 'cos it's fun and the massive are, well, civilized. Nah,..real nice!

Btw: seem to have missed what HJH stands for.

I do actually quite like coming here and am pleased so many others find it the same

Incidentally, for those confused by HJHs etc there is a "word jargon" discussion somewhere around

couldn't agree more.

... but then again I only post on this site because it seems nice.

God bless us one and all (if you're an atheist skip the God bit but the sentiment remains).

I sometimes post on certain football sites (no names, no pack drill). What a dispiriting experience it is, more often than not. But, like a moth to a flame...

This site never fails to be an antidote to such ignorance and mean-spiritedness. Other websites are available, but they're just not The Word, are they?

That said, this site is a complete productivity killer! Procrastination on a truly epic scale is only a click away ;-)

with what everyone else has said Patrick, lovely words indeed. Its great that you have taken time out to express what you feel about the site, and about people you have never met...lovely.

As soon as the computer fires up this site is my first port of call, always. As Dougie has mentioned, and i'm sure others have done, I have visited and contributed to various other blogs over the years, but none can hold a light up to this one, they are either too serious or just plain mean spirited.

Thanks Patrick for reminding me how damn good it is here

My sentiments exactly, and thanks Patrick for being so reliably upbeat.

I don't subscribe(!) I would never miss an issue nor does a day go by when I don't check out the contents herein. You put into words what so many of us feel, Patrick, so thank you.

...for your candour and positivity, Patrick; it takes a brave man to air his vulnerabilities as you have, and props to you for doing so. I usually end up either moaning or shouting when I come "on forum" - which I always feel embarrassed about - but I also love and really appreciate having the mag and the podcast there (even if I did make some wholly ungracious comments about the "record shop" podcast which I now totally regret).

Morning,
Have a really great day.

look at us guys!

Nothing in particular to add other than to echo what's already gone above. With this site and Twitter, I'm nowhere near as productive as I should be, but that's how it goes.

I feel there's a perfect mix of detailed discussion and complete whimsy on here that gets me through the day with a smile on my face.

Thanks to anyone who's ever replied to something I've written or started a thread I've contributed too; you've made a young man very happy.

And Patrick, you really are the starter of some stellar threads! The band partnerships, the bands as foods and countless others - all a joy. I may go and get a coffee in your honour!

so I can't be doing with all this group huggery, though I know what Patrick means. It's a good site to be a part of.

For your contributions in the past I propose you should be added to The Word payroll. No dammit, we should ALL be added.

Calling Mr H...(there's never a smiley face when you need one)

Great sentiment well put Patrick.

....can I just say thank you to the bloke who came up to me in a coffee shop in South Kensington earlier this week and said how much he enjoyed the magazine and the podcasts? And the bloke on the tube at Highbury and Islington the week before who said much the same thing.

It means a lot.

If everything keeps going ok then I'm about to become a dad for the first time in May, and threads like the one recently with other peoples experiences of parenthood have been invaluable and very much appreciated

Thanks, Patrick, well said.

Like most of you I visit the blog more often than I should and have done so for a jolly long time. Though I don't post very often this has never stopped me feeling part of a community that is about as close to real as any web-based group can get. And like the rest of you, my heart is constantly warmed by the good-natured tone of almost everything that goes on here, not to mention that the odd thread of sentiment is by no means out of place. I can't imagine any other blog with a smiliar sense of camaraderie.

It's a wonderful place to be.

about time we all said a big thanks to each other. This place keeps me sane some days, and drives me mad on others. Love it to bits.

Like some of the above posters, this is the first and only blog I have posted to.
Others sport, news, etc. like an outsider looking in.
This confirms, what I have always felt, that almost without exception, people on the lifelong voyage of musical discovery are good and more importantly open and interesting.

Long may the Word Massive rule under the benevelent eye of Lord Word.

I'd better join in. Haven't been on in weeks (busy, working, studying, parenting, gigging, eating, going to the bog....), but I love it here. As has been said on many occassions, there is a respect for others here that is missing from most other message boards. I can only assume its to do with the age demographic, and the fact that most of us were brought up to be decent, thoughtful people.

Thanks again Patrick for starting this thread.

I'm off to Letterkenny tonight to watch Jack L, and to get sozzled, and it feels great to be able to tell a bunch of people that I've never met about it, in the knowledge that they might, just might be interested.

Life is good!

Think the whole arrow controversy and its resolution epitomises this community.

I like "supportive and inclusive" and love being part of "The Word - Where the women are strong, the men are good looking* and all the posts are above average"

*Beards are fine by me

I can't tell you how heartening it is to read this thread. Genuinely moving, especially the posts from Patrick Crowther and cornishmanc. It IS absurdly hard work, you're right, but fantastically satisfying, especially when you read reactions like these. I felt much the same meeting Twangothan, Lunaman and Carl Parker in the pub the other night. So glad you all like WORD and the site so much. And that you put up with our whims and daft enthusiasms. All the best from an editor who "thinks The Hazards Of Love by The Decemberists is the greatest record ever made". Chuh!

that as well as holding the record for lengthiest thread, Patrick surely now also holds the record for most 'up' arrows in a single thread.

Honestly, there's just no stopping the man!

Have a great weekend all!

It's nice to find somewhere civilized in the wild west of the web.

For five months of this year I was out of work. Things never reached Danmac proportions but this site helped to keep my mind active-whether that's a good idea is another thing.

Here is a great place to be, though I do worry about how the rest of my life is getting on without me sometimes.

I've been on this blog. Every moment has been a pleasure. I'd also like to echo all of the above sentiments. It's nice to know that I can ask advice about Playstation 3's, discuss the glory of Micronauts, offer some sort of solace to a fellow human being in need and argue the merits of rap lyrics in the one place with intelligent, thoughtful, opinionated individuals.
As I've said before, it's the first place I come to when I log on and not the naughty-boys section at the back of the internet. Even during those 2am insomnia periods. Thanks.

I always like reading your comments, especially when your passion for photography and Italy shines through (your photos are damn good too!).

I must say that a few weeks ago I was getting a bit fed up with the strange niggly vibe that seemed to infect the Blog for a bit.
However, when Danmac appeared with an update on his situation and then reading your Post - it all makes me realize what a great little on-line community we have here.

Unfortunate fixture clash with the Old Dear's 70th that weekend and I had to visit my Northern Estates.

This is a nice thread. Can I have a hug too then if there are any going? Enjoy your posts Patrick and good luck to you with the sober life.Is there no Mrs/Mr Crowther to keep you company of an evening? If not ,I hope one will cross your path very soon.
Cornishmac,I went through something similiar a few years ago and standing outside the hospital one nightminding my own business an old woman came over to me and said" you will find the strengh ".I hope you do.

they said.

Just one plea - can everyone make the blog dull and uninteresting for a few weeks so I can get some proper studying done? Every week I strongly resolve not to look in on here for a while and knuckle down ; every week I fail, pathetically. I'm a Word addict. I need therapy. :-)

Can I just change the pace by saying that I kinda hate y'all.
That's because it's nigh on impossible trying to read obscure Irish political magazines and blogs online for my PhD knowing that this fecking site is only a click away. Can't resist clicking.
Spent today (12 hours, BTW) trying to read Loyalist blogs and got sucked into eReaders, posting about Damon Runyon and agreeing with Dougie J's forces of darkness, again.
Will y'all get nasty with one another so I can hate the feckin place and chase me away.
It's your fault Crowther, Dougie J et al that my thesis is going to be six months late.
Bastards.
Don't start me about listening to the Candyman podcast about 10 times, or about Hepworth and the peerless Markiechops on Jan Moir.

Patrick take care of yourself I have always enjoyed your comments .That this site includes such wit, humanity , honesty and a wide spectrum of opinions with rarely a punch thrown says it all .

For Cornishmac there is nothing else I can say but you know your among mates .

The Spartacus moment makes me smile .

a couple of days and only just got to this. Can I just concur with all that is said about this wonderful site. In the space of a week I received an unsolicited cd from one of the posters to this site, met up with another for a pint and who kindly gave me a cd of a Danny Thimpson/Toumani Diabate colloboration I had been looking for. Yesterday I received an email from someone else who had previously posted on the site about the upcoming Pete Molinari tour (his manager no less) and arranged to go and see Midlake with another member of the massive who I had met earlier this year. It has been something of a Word week however trhe posting from cornishmanc above puts it all into perspective. Without being maudlin I dont know the guy but generally felt his pain because he is one of us. Yes we can disagree but generally we do it in a civilised way. The politicians should take note!! (Second thoughts keep them away)

Hit the N on the H.
I don't get time to post as much as others but love to read the site and everyone's contributions.

and only hang around 'cos I've lost the 'address' bar on my browser and can't type in any other websites.

Believe me, if I could, I'd be off to www.yourllama.co.uk or www.argocat_user.co.uk but I guess for the time being I'm stuck with you lot ;-)

I'm off to Ross Feeds to pick up a sack of goat mix.

Has there ever been a site like this?

I don’t mean that in the sense of ‘hey, isn’t it great here?’, although that’s very true.

It’s a genuine question. I can’t think of any website I’ve seen with such a community covering such a broad range of subjects.